It's Starting To Taste Like Fall With Starbucks Fall Menu

Starbucks Releases Fall Menu for 2023

Photo by Caroline Cureton/Maclay Andalusian

Starbucks released their fall menu on Aug. 24. On the menu for drinks, there are pumpkin spice latte, pumpkin cream cold brew, iced pumpkin cream chai tea latte, iced apple crisp oat milk shaken espresso and apple crisp oat milk macchiato. For baked goods, Starbucks has baked apple croissants, cream cheese filled pumpkin muffin and an owl cake pop. Some of these items are making returns and some of them are hitting the market for the first time.

Pumpkin Spice Latte: This  latte is a classic that Starbucks brings to their menu each year. It is a drink best served warm with the color of it being pumpkin orange. The first sip was good, and the pumpkin flavor really stood out and overpowered the test of coffee. The taste was mediocre, but I was expecting more from it. The presentation of the drink was disappointing. It is a warm drink, so it does not come in a see-through cup and it was just orange with whipped cream and cinnamon. Although the drink itself was okay, it is a very classic fall drink that tastes like pumpkin.

The Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew: This coffee has stayed on starbucks menu for a while for coffee lovers. This drink has a very strong coffee taste and little pumpkin taste to it. Most of the pumpkin taste comes from the foam and little from the actual drink. The taste and presentation were both underwhelming with the looks and taste of a normal cold brew. It was not a very fall drink, however, because neither the color nor taste really give any hint of pumpkin.

The Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai Tea Latte: Starbucks also has something on the menu for tea drinkers. Starbucks has brought to its menu for many years for non-coffee lovers. The presentation of the drink is basic with a beige color, not something very special. The looks on the drink do deceive, and the taste of the drink is amazing with a nice cinnamon and pumpkin taste. Nothing in the drink was too strong or too bland. This drink is definitely a fall drink and Starbucks should continue to sell it in following years.

The Apple Crisp Oat Milk Shaken Espresso (new): The presentation of this drink was amazing. It had a slight apple taste to it but was mainly overpowered by the very strong coffee taste. The after taste of the drink tasted like burnt apple which was not pleasing. This drink looks like something that would be on a fall magazine but the taste ruins that fall feel.

The Apple Crisp Oat Milk Macchiato (new): This drink was a more basic and traditional drink. Its presentation looked plain, and  had a very prominent coffee taste with little apple taste. The drink is perfect for people who love coffee and want to try something on the fall menu. Although the name sounds like fall, this new drink would not be considered very fall-like. 

The goods on the other hand proved to be an entirely different story.

The Apple Croissant: This was served warm and crispy. Though the presentation looks basic, the taste was not. The taste of apple and cinnamon was an amazing combination. This is a fall food and did not disappoint.

Cream Cheese Pumpkin Muffin: Personally this is the best item on the fall menu. Starbucks has an amazing pumpkin loaf, so my standards were high for this, and Starbucks surpassed the expectation. The add-in of cream cheese was odd but made it all the better. This was definitely a fall sweet food. 

Classic Cake Pop: Starbucks had an owl shaped one. It tasted like a vanilla cake pop and the look of a purple owl on the fall menu did not look right. The presentation was not a fall theme at all, and this was definitely not a fall food.